MikeJ807
Returning Member

TurboTax and Ampersand Characters

Hello.  I have encountered two different errors when TT online is reviewing my 2022 Federal 1040 return prior to e-filing.

 

First is Form 1099-B Worksheet - Capital Asset Sale Wksht (1):  Desription is invalid for Electronic Filing.  Please remove all preceding spaces or invalid characters.  It shows the Description field with only an "&" but the actual Worksheet below takes literally over 5 minutes to display (!).  What I then do is just change "&" to "and".  However, the field in question must be present multiple times in the same worksheet, as I have to make the same correction multiple times (each time waiting 5+ minutes for the page to fully display--very annoying).  The field in question is "Name(s) Shown on Return".  It has our names as "John B & Jane D Smith".  I assume TT generates this value, as we do not specify it like that anywhere on our return.  Why does TT generate "&" in this field when evidently the IRS does not accept it, thus requiring us to correct it?

 

Second is similar for a 1099-B sale.  The Box 1a -Description is blanked out and the error is "Needs info".  The original field value contains a fund name like "U S Aerospace & Defense", but I had to search through 50 pages in my 1099-B to find it based the Proceeds, Date, and Basis figures displayed.  Again, I changed "&" to "and" and the review completed successfully.

 

I have not e-filed yet, but I assume the IRS will not reject this return with the changes I made.

 

I see other posts about "&" not being treated correctly in W-2 Employer Box C values, but the above problems appear to be different?

 

Please advise if this is a known or new bug, or (for the fund name with "&") maybe I need to contact my financial institution?